hectored 1 of 2

adjective

as in cowed

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hectored

2 of 2

verb

past tense of hector
as in intimidated
to make timid or fearful by or as if by threats the judge warned the attorney that hectoring the witness with aggressive questioning would not be allowed

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of hectored
Verb
At school, he was hectored because of his shabby wardrobe. — Dan Pompei, New York Times, 23 June 2026 For over a century, citizens have been surveilled while the media is harassed and hectored into compromise, so that the official rhetoric of Slavic suprematism can go unchallenged. — Literary Hub, 3 Apr. 2026 Jason Sudeikis, Robert Smigel, and George Wendt hectored Kelce to (1) make Taylor pony up for a new stadium and (2) propose already. — Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 14 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hectored
  1. intimidated
  2. bullied
  3. browbeaten
  4. frightened
  5. oppressed
  6. crushed
  7. downtrodden
Adjective
  • The biggest hurdle, though, is simply believing the Elle Woods who learns to prove her doubters wrong at 16 would be so intimidated when faced with doing it again at 22.
    — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 29 June 2026
  • In traditional settings, people often feel rushed, intimidated, and unseen.
    — Lisa Deaderick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 May 2026
Definition of intimidated
Verb
  • Bang-geul was bullied by her older half-siblings, who looked down on their younger sister because of her mom’s former status as a domestic employee.
    — Kayti Burt, Time, 6 July 2026
  • This was a rabid, partisan home-soil advantage that flat-out bullied the squad into surviving.
    — Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 2 July 2026
Definition of bullied
Adjective
  • Audiences who endured the Miramax era have been browbeaten to believe that the best picture Oscar should go to a period piece that chokes out a sob from audiences.
    — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 22 Jan. 2026
  • Not to the extent that the user is necessarily being browbeaten.
    — Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2025
Definition of browbeaten
Verb
  • At the time of writing, as the Marine Traffic map shows, tanker traffic is barely moving through the Strait, and many ships, unable to obtain insurance or with their owners frightened at the level of risk involved, are refusing to advance.
    — Ariel Cohen, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026
  • But because the president has frightened Congress, Congress doesn’t raise its voice when the president puts his Albert Speer–like building project, or intends to, on Congress’s land.
    — David Frum, The Atlantic, 1 July 2026
Definition of frightened
Adjective
  • The Irish were the original oppressed people from the English Empire, and the original colony.
    — Dan Adler, Vanity Fair, 15 May 2026
  • The body pointed to the fact that Iran’s Farabi cinema body, which oversees the country’s submission, was directly controlled by the hardline Islamic Republic regime government, which in turn has suppressed freedom of speech and brutally oppressed filmmakers across its 47 years in power.
    — Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 4 May 2026
Definition of oppressed
Adjective
  • The noodles are soft and mixed with bean sprouts, egg and crushed peanuts.
    — Justin Brown, AJC.com, 12 July 2026
  • Oreo Overload Nachos from Dairy Zone for $10 start with waffle chips piled around vanilla ice cream, hot fudge topped with crushed Oreo cookies for dipping and whipped cream.
    — Susan Stapleton, Des Moines Register, 9 July 2026
Definition of crushed
Adjective
  • The series tracks the pair’s investment in Wrexham AFC, a once-downtrodden team in Wales that has since risen to the verge of a promotion to the Premier League, the highest tier of British pro soccer.
    — Dade Hayes, Deadline, 30 June 2026
  • The Union’s Army of the Potomac, about 90,000 men, was looking downtrodden after the losses.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 June 2026
Definition of downtrodden

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Cite this Entry

“Hectored.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hectored. Accessed 19 Jul. 2026.

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